After going up the mountain, everyone started cutting pig feed.

Under Lin Xiaoxiao's guidance, Han Qiushi also learned which kinds of pigs were edible and which were not.

As he worked, he marked the trees with his military knife before slowly disappearing into the woods.

Not long after, Han Qiushi brought out a pheasant and a rabbit.

Because there were too many children, Han Qiushi didn't take them out, but instead hid them in a certain place.

Lin Xiaoxiao noticed Han Qiushi the moment he appeared, and with her sharp eyes, she saw that he had something in his hand. She glanced at the children around her and then remained silent.

Giving children this food occasionally is fine, but doing it every time will spoil their hearts.

Children may not be thinking much, but the adults behind them can be quite different. Besides, children do have thoughts and can think, so it's always good to pay attention.

Because the pig feed at the foot of the mountain hadn't been cut for a while, everyone quickly filled a basket with it.

After delivering the pig feed, Han Qiushi went along to deliver the pig feed as well.

Han Qiushi saw the cowshed in the distance from where he was delivering pig feed.

The houses in the cowshed were very simple. At first, I heard that there was only one room for people to sleep in. After the people from below came, they simply divided that room into two rooms with a few wooden planks.

When more people came later, the brigade built a separate mud house for them.

The mud houses looked alright from the outside, but the inside was pitch black, so you could guess that the environment inside wasn't very good. Lin Xiaoxiao said that the brigade hadn't made things difficult for the people inside.

Considering the potential impact, providing relief is out of the question.

After handing over the pig feed, they and the children went back on their own.

As the two walked along the road, villagers passing by would greet Lin Xiaoxiao from time to time. When they saw Han Qiushi, their eyes would light up, and everyone would ask him a few questions.

Han Qiushi always answered enthusiastically, "Auntie, I'm her boyfriend."

"Sir, she's my girlfriend."

Lin Xiaoxiao and Han Qiushi walked back like this, and along the way they heard cursing, and more and more people gathered around.

Lin Xiaoxiao immediately pulled Han Qiushi to stand aside and listen to the commotion inside.

Looks like there's some gossip going on!

These days there aren't many forms of entertainment, but gossip can bring people joy.

An old woman pointed at a female educated youth and scolded, "Little brat, my child has been helping you with the work all along. So when are you going to marry my child? I'll make some preparations and go to the educated youth's place to propose marriage."

Upon hearing this, Lin Xiaoxiao immediately stopped and listened intently.

The girl who was asked turned pale and quickly shook her head: "That's not what I meant. I just saw that he was very enthusiastic, so I didn't refuse."

The old woman was furious when she heard the young woman say that. "You're so young, yet you already know how to cheat and be cunning. We've all lived for decades, how could we not know what you're thinking?"

"Are you treating us all like fools? If you weren't pretending to be weak, would my child be helping you with the chores?"

The female educated youth immediately teared up, "Auntie, you're being unreasonable."

“It’s clearly your child, but he asked me about it himself.”

Why are they all so unreasonable?

The old woman didn't know what to say for a moment, so she ran to her child, grabbed his ear, and said, "You shameless thing, listen to this, the other person doesn't even have a crush on you, but you're so enthusiastic about helping them with their work."

"They're treating you like a free laborer."

The old woman was so angry that her son had been tricked like this that she said to everyone, "I see that you all have sons at home. Be careful, or the girl will deny everything and you'll have nowhere to cry."

Hearing this, the people around started cursing and swearing. The female educated youth covered her face, cried, and ran away.

Wang Juan and her mother were watching the commotion from the sidelines. "It's bound to be a misfortune for the family to marry into this family like this. Luckily, when they found out, she was only doing some chores, otherwise she really would have been forced to marry into the family."

"They won't do this job, they won't do that job, they just want to see if there's any peace and quiet at home."

Wang Juan hesitated before asking, "But I'm not very good at housework, so what will I do if I go to the Hu family's house..."

Lin Xiaoxiao then heard Wang Juanniang's smug voice, "Hey, you're different because you're educated. You only need to use your brain. Don't think this is an easy job. You're really good at this."

“You can’t compare people. My daughter hasn’t even been to the village chief’s house yet, and I’m afraid I’m not virtuous enough.”

"Tell me, how many people in this village are as outstanding as my daughter? My daughter is both excellent and blessed. Hu San adores her, he's head over heels for her. Remember to come to her wedding feast, everyone..."

Because the marriage was based on mutual attraction between the two people, Wang Juanniang was extremely proud of her daughter.

These past few days, the other party happened to come to propose marriage, and Wang Juanniang seized the opportunity to start showing off that her child was going to marry the son of the village chief next door.

“My child was born to enjoy a life of luxury. He is hardworking and good at studying. He works as a scorekeeper in the village. I never expected that the village chief’s son would take a liking to him.”

"I am very happy, but thinking about it, I also feel a little sad. Now that this child is married, I won't be able to see her every day anymore."

Many of the older women were envious when they heard the news. "Wang Juan has always been a good girl. I knew she would marry into a good family, and I was right."

"He really is the village chief's son? Wow, he's got a good life."

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!